Tackling Tough Staff Issues: A Strategic HR Guide to High-Risk Challenges – 5 program recorded webinar series

Session 1: Mutual Exit Strategies: Navigating Low-Conflict Workplace Separations

When an employment relationship has broken down, both parties often recognise that it’s time to move on—but dragging out a performance or disciplinary process benefits no one. In these situations, a well-managed, mutually agreed separation can minimise disruption, preserve dignity, and reduce legal and reputational risk.This session offers HR professionals a strategic guide to facilitating low-conflict exits with clarity, compliance and compassion. It will:

• Outline how to prepare internally for an agreed separation, including what information should be gathered, documented, and presented before involving legal counsel;
• Explore the legal mechanisms that can support a clean exit—such as without prejudice discussions, settlement offers, and deeds of release—along with the risks and limitations of each
• Provide guidance on communication strategy throughout the process, from informal “fireside chats” to formal correspondence—tailoring messaging to the audience and desired outcome while maintaining procedural fairness and protecting the organisation.

Session 2: Rigour, Risk and Role Clarity: The HR Professional’s Guide to Workplace Investigations

Workplace investigations are rarely straightforward. They are often emotionally charged, time-sensitive, and legally high-stakes. A flawed process—or a misstep by HR—can expose the organisation to serious liability, reputational damage, or regulatory scrutiny. Now, with recent legislative changes heightening the need for formal investigations in certain contexts, getting the process right is more important than ever. This session provides a structured and practical guide for HR professionals tasked with conducting or overseeing workplace investigations. It will:

• Set out the hallmarks of an effective, procedurally fair investigation process, including key stages and documentation requirements
• Clarify when a formal workplace investigation is required, particularly in light of recent legal developments around psychosocial risk, sexual harassment, and safety obligations
• Define the appropriate role of HR in internal investigations—what to lead, what to delegate, and when to step back
• Discuss when to escalate to an external investigator and how to select the right one
• Provide guidance on evidence gathering, including interviews, document handling, and managing informal sources of information
• Outline how to handle sensitive and/or legally privileged information, including record-keeping, reporting obligations, and what must (and must not) be disclosed

Session 3: Flexibility under Pressure: Managing Difficult Employees and the Complexities of Flexible Work

With expanded rights to request flexible working arrangements—and a growing willingness by employees to challenge refusals—employers are under increased pressure to navigate these requests lawfully and fairly. When the employee is already “difficult” to manage, the stakes are even higher. This session explores the legal obligations and strategic considerations involved in handling flexible work requests from high-risk or resistant employees. It will:

• Clarify the current legal framework for flexible work arrangements, including recent legislative changes and key takeaways from recent case law
• Examine how tribunals and external decision makers are interpreting what constitutes a “reasonable” request or refusal—and what this means for HR decision-making
• Discuss the need for a differentiated approach across roles and seniority levels, and how to articulate operational grounds for refusal without inviting legal challenge
• Unpack the growing use (and misuse) of the right to disconnect as a shield against performance management, and how to respond when it’s raised by a resistant employee
• Provide practical guidance for responding to requests, documenting decisions, and managing the risk of bullying or adverse action claims linked to flexible work disputes

Session 4: Performance Management Without Pitfalls: A Pragmatic Guide to Process, Documentation and Risk Control

A misstep in performance management—no matter how well-intentioned—can hand an employee a “free kick” in the form of an unfair dismissal, general protections, or bullying claim. And when mental health concerns are involved, the risks and responsibilities for HR professionals multiply. This practical session will equip HR professionals to manage underperformance confidently, lawfully, and compassionately, with a focus on what to do, how to document it, and how to navigate mental health complexities along the way. It will:

• Step through a best-practice performance management process—covering both informal conversations and formal procedures—with a focus on procedural fairness, legal compliance, and psychological safety
• Clarify how to approach performance issues when mental health concerns are known, suspected, or disclosed mid-process—including when to pause, adjust, or proceed
• Provide tips for documenting performance concerns sensitively and thoroughly, especially where behaviour or capacity may be impacted by mental health
• Explore obligations to consider reasonable adjustments under anti-discrimination and WHS laws, and how to balance these with legitimate performance expectations
• Offer guidance for managing disengagement, delay tactics, or heightened emotional responses—without abandoning process or triggering avoidable claims
• Highlight the key risks of getting it wrong, from stress-related workers’ compensation claims to bullying allegations and reputational damage, with strategies to mitigate them

Session 5: When the Buck Stops with HR: Avoiding Accessorial Liability in the Age of Do-It-All Expectations

As HR professionals are increasingly expected to act as in-house employment law experts, the risks of stepping into legal territory have never been greater. With rising penalties and expanded regulatory scrutiny, providing what seems like helpful “advice” could land HR in legal hot water—as an accessory to a contravention. This essential session provides HR professionals with the tools and strategies to draw clear boundaries between lawful support and unlawful legal advice—protecting both themselves and their organisations. It will:

• Clarify the legislative framework around accessorial liability, including how courts distinguish between general HR support and the provision of legal advice
• Use practical examples to demonstrate where HR professionals can inadvertently cross the line—and how to recognise the red flags early
• Provide language and strategies to help HR practitioners push back diplomatically when management expectations are unrealistic or legally risky, without compromising their professional standing.